Joshua 3-4, Joshua 5: 1-12, Luke 22: 1-38, Psalm 69: 1-12
Joshua 3: 14-17 (ESV)
“So when the people set out from their tents to pass over
the Jordan with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, and
as soon as those bearing the ark had come as far as the Jordan, and the feet of
the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (now the
Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest), the waters
coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap very far away, at Adam, the
city that is beside Zarethan, and those flowing down toward the Sea of the
Arabah, the Salt Sea, were completely cut off. And the people passed over
opposite Jericho. Now the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord
stood firmly on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, and all Israel was
passing over on dry ground until all the nation finished passing over the
Jordan.”
In verses 14 through 16 from Joshua 3, we see God give to Joshua
another miraculous water passage so people would know that he was with Joshua.
God commanded that Joshua lead the people across the river Jordan during Spring
when the banks of the river were very high due to all the rains. Now the
priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground
in the midst of the Jordan, and all Israel was passing over on dry ground until
all the nation finished passing over the Jordan. Similar to the miracle during
the passage through the Red Sea, the people were able to cross the Jordan.
Bible scholars have noted that God not only stopped the
river flowing, but he also dried up the riverbed so it was dry when the people crossed.
They have also noted that the crossing of the Jordan was a greater leap of faith
Joshua and the people of Israel. When Moses led the people across the Red Sea,
they were running away from the Egyptians. When Joshua lead his people across
the Jordan river, this crossing meant that they were running into danger and
not away from danger. Joshua and the people of Israel made the cross with the expectation
that they were now going to war with people of Jericho and the whole land of
Canaan.
When I read these verses, it made me wonder if I had a
similar miracle in my life where God was leading me try something new and not
because he was saving me from some calamity or misfortune. It takes a greater trust
in God when he wants you to run towards something that may be new and
unfamiliar, to leave your comfort and safety to do the fulfill God’s will. My “crossing
of the Jordan” miracle happened when the Holy Spirit encouraged me to move to a
different state without a job offer on the table. That move was uncomfortable but
it lead me to have such a deeper relationship with God.
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